Steam iron



Aug. 11, 1953 R. J SCOTT ET A 2,648,148

STEAM IRON Filed Jan. 2, 1951 ,JTTORNE K Patented Aug. 11, 1953 STEAM IRON Robert J. Scott, Blue Springs, Mo., and Nicholas M. Rusko, Mission, Kans., assignors to John O. Hockery, Kansas City, Mo., trustee for Henry J. Talge and Foster L. Talge, Kansas City, Mo.

Application January 2, 1951, Serial No. 203,912

This invention relates in general to flat irons for pressing fabrics, and it deals more particularly with an improved construction in electric steam-generating irons.

Broadly speaking, it is the object of the invention to provide a steam iron of the type having a self-contained boiler or water storage reservoir of considerable capacity, which iron is compact, light in weight, and attractive in appearance; it is a further objective to provide an iron of this character which is simple and comparatively economical to manufacture, which is durable and capable of giving long and trouble-free service, but easy to repair when necessary, which is safe to use, and is easy to fill with water from time to time as needed in the normal use of the iron.

In irons of the type indicated, the steam generated in the boiler customarily is discharged through apertures in the sole plate, reaching said apertures through a tube or stand pipe whose upper end is disposed within an elevated steam dome formed in the upper side of the boiler. Ordinarily, the boiler also is provided with a safety valve to release the steam pressure in the event the discharge tube or apertures become clogged, and in all cases there must, of course, be an opening for filling the boiler with water which necessitates a closure for sealing the filler open- 11 Having in mind these requirements, and specifically the need for a closure, a safety valve and a steam dome, one of the important objects of the present invention is to provide a single unit of novel construction combining the functions of at least two of these elements, and preferably all three, thereby to increase the compactness of the iron and the economy of its manufacture.

A further object is to provide a single unit of the foregoing character which is easily removable for replacement or repair.

Another object is to provide a steam iron wherein the filler opening, its closure, the steam dome, the steam discharge tube or stand pipe, and the safety valve, all are normally concealed from view for the sake of the appearance of the iron, yet all are readily accessible.

According to the invention, we provide a steam iron whose boiler is mounted on the upper side of the sole plate and makes up the main portion of the body of the iron. On the top of the boiler is a handle for manipulating the iron, this handle being hingedly mounted so that one of the handle posts can swing up and down toward and away from the boiler. A latch is provided for releasably securing the post to the boiler, and the filler 3 Claims. (01. 38-77) 2 opening for the boiler is so located that when the handle is latched down, the base of said post covers the opening to conceal same.

The steam discharge tube extends upwardly from the sole plate through the boiler and projects through the filler opening into the hollow interior of the post; within the post and carried thereby is a hollow dome whose lower rim is adapted to seal against the margin of the filler opening when the handle is latched down. This member, serving both as a closure and as a steam dome, is spring biased toward sealing position, but in the presence of an excess pressure in the boiler, will unseat and serve also as a safety valve to release the pressure; the construction and mounting arrangement of this member are salient features of novelty of the present invention.

Other objects of the invention, together with the features whereby the objects are achieved, will appear in the course of the following description.

In the accompanying drawings which are to be read in conjunction with the specification, and in which like reference numerals are used to indicate like parts of the various views:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of a steam iron embodying the invention, parts being broken away to show in section the structural details of the handle and closure member for the filler opening of the boiler,

Fig. 2 is a cross sectional view of the iron taken alongthe line 22 of Fig. 1 in the direction of the arrows,

Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view of the iron taken along the line 3-4 of Fig. l in the direction of the arrows,

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional elevation taken along the line 4-4 of Fig. 1 in the direction of the arrows, and

Fig. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the lower portion of the handle and the closure member assembly.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, the electric steam iron shown therein has a sole plate I0, preferably of cast aluminum, upon which is mounted a boiler shell l2 of suitable light metal, covering the major portion of the upper surface of the sole plate. A resistance heating element, not shown, is embedded in the sole plate to heat the boiler as well as the fabric being pressed; this is connected to suitable electrical terminals and a thermostatic control housed beneath a cover It mounted rearwardly of the boiler and projecting slightly beyond the sole plate, as shown.

Above the boiler is a handle I6 which conveniently can be molded of plastic material in the shape shown. The lower rear end of the handle is connected to the upper wall of the boiler by a hinge 18 so that the forward end of the handle is free to swing up and down about pintle IS, the handle being illustrated in its lowermost position in Fig. 1. In this position, the forward post 20 of the handle is disposed over a shallow cupshaped depression or well 22 in the boiler, and a plate 24 secured to the base of the post enters the mouth of the depression, substantially .closing same and lying flush with the top surface of the boiler. I

Plate 24 (which it will be understood conforms in outline with the mouth of the depression or well) has a generally triangular forward portion disposed directly under post ,210 and a rectangular portion projecting rearwardly of the post. It is secured to the handle by means of two screws 26 which extend through holes 28 in the plate into registerin threaded holes 30 of the post.

The rearwardly projecting portion of plate 24 contains a bearing hole 32 through which extends the shank of a rotatable stud 3 having a rounded, integral cross bar or head 36 at its lower end. A knob 3:8 is secured to the upper end of the stud by a set screw 40, this knob having a flared base portion 42 resting against the upper surface of plate 24 and a rearwardly projecting fln or finger 44 by means .of which the knob and stud may be turned as a unit. Below the plate, a cup-shaped compression washer 46 encircles the shank of the stud, exerting a downward thrust on head 36 to maintain the flared base of the knobtightly against the upper side of the plate. As best seen in Fig. 2, one .quadrant of the knobs base is cut away, forming shoulders 48 and 49 which serve as stops cooperating with a lug 50 turned up from plate 24 to limit rotation of the knob to 90.

In the rear portion of the well 22, an inverted cup-shaped member. 52 is welded or brazed to the boiler shell, and this contains an elongated opening 54 adapted to receive the head 36 of stud of 34 when .the .axis of the head is aligned with the axis of the opening, that is to say, when knob 38 is turned so stop shoulder 49 abuts against lug 50. When the knob is turned through 90 from this position, with the forward end of handle l6 pressed down, the parts Sbecome oriented as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, and it will be noted from the latter figure that the head :38 of the stud then is crosswise of the elongated opening '54 so that it latches the handle down. In

thiscondition, the cup-shaped washer 46 is compressed between the top of member 52 and the underside of plate 24, as illustrated in Fig. l, holding the latch elements frictionally against accidental displacement.

In the bottom of .the depression or well 22, forward of the latch, is a rather large aperture 56 forming the filler opening for the boiler of my iron. The closure for this opening comprises a vertically elongated dome-shaped member 58 which extends upwardly through .an aperture .60 in plate 24, into the hollowed out cavity 62 in the forward post of the handle. A .coiled compression spring 64, held centered by studs 66 and 61 on the upper wall of the cavity and the top of the closure member respectively, urges the latter downwardly so that its lower end enters the filler opening. Around the lower end is stretched an O-ring or elastic garter band 7!] of resilient gasket material, and above this the closure has an outwardly extending flange 12 forming a shoulder which, under the influence of spring 64, urges the gasket down into sealing engagement with the bottom of the Well around the filler opening.

The filler opening and the correspondingly shaped lower end of the closure member which enters same, may be of any desired outline, but it is preferred to make them generally triangular, as shown, in order to conform with the tapered .shape of the iron at the forward end thereof;

this makes it possible to obtain maximum area of the filler opening while preserving the conventional lines of the body of the iron for the sake of appearance.

The closure member 58 is carried by plate 24, but enjoys limitedfree movement relative thereto as .will now be explained. Referring to Figs. 4 and 5, the portion of the member above flange 12 comprises a stem having a generally cylindrical exterior with an annular groove 14 at its lower end, that is to say, immediately adjacent the flange. The forward and rear sides of the stem are flattened to form diametrically opposed longitudinal faces 76 which are parallel to one another and spaced'apart by a distance substantially equal to the outside diameter of the stem measured at the base of the groove. On the lateral sides of the stem are a pair of opposed, similarly spaced flattened faces 18 which extend upwardly from the groove a short distance and terminate in shoulders 80.

Aperture 69 in plate 24 is slightly elongated in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the iron, its lateral width being less than the maximum .outside diameter of the stem section of the closure member, but slightly greater than the diameter of the stem measured at the base of groove '14. Thus, referring to Fig. 5, the stem of the closure can not be passed directly upward through aperture 60 while the two parts are oriented as shown; however, if the closure member is rotated through 90 about its own longitudinal axis, bringing the flattened faces 16 into register with the lateral sides of aperture 60, the stem then can be advanced axially upward through the aperture until plate 24 is adjacent flange 12. Since groove. '14 now is in register with plate 24, it is possible to turn the closure member back through 90 to its original orientation relative to .plate24, which brings the flattened faces 18 of the stem into register with the lateral sides of aperture 60. Accordingly, the stem of the closure can be advanced axially downward relative the plate, but only until shoulders 80 strike the upper surface of the plate at the lateral edges of aperture 60.

From the foregoing it will be seen that if the handle of my iron is unlatched (by turning knob 38 until shoulder 49 strikes lug 50) and the forward end of the handle is swung upwardly about the hinge or pivot 16, the closure member-will be lifted with the handle, giving access to the filler opening ,56 .so that the boiler may be filled with water. Spring .64 tends to force the closure member outwardly through opening 60, but the shoulders 80 prevent it from being ejected. When, after the boiler has been filled with water, handle [6 is swung back down toward the .positionlshown in Fig. 1, gasket 10 seats first so that as the handle is pushed home and latched, the .closure is forced upwardly a short distance against the tension of spring 64. In other words, shoulders 80 are lifted clear of plateld as shown in Fig. 4, and the force with which the gasket is urged against the bottom of :the .well to eal the filler opening, is the force exerted on the closure member by the slightly compressed spring 64.

In the sole plate of my iron, are the usual steam discharge ports 84 which communicate with a stand pipe 86 extending upwardly through the boiler and projecting through the filler opening 56 into the hollow interior 88 of the closure member 58, the upper end of the stand pipe being well above the top of the boiler shell. When the water in the boiler is heated by the electrical resistance element embedded in the sole plate, the steam generated passes upwardly inside of member 58 around the pipe 86, and, on reaching the top of chamber '88, reverses its course and then flows downwardly through the pipe, escaping onto the fabric being ironed through discharge ports 84. Member 58, in other words, serves as a steam dome to receive the elevated end of discharge pipe 86, an arrangement which prevents the Water in the boiler from splashing into the pipe and being discharged onto the fabric in liquid rather than vapor phase.

If the steam discharge ports or the discharge tube should for any reason become clogged, causing the pressure in the boiler to increase, member 58 will be forced upwardly against the tension of spring 64 before an unsafe boiler pressure is reached, allowing the steam to escape through the filler opening 56 around the edges of plate 24.

Attention also is directed to the fact that when the handle is unlatched and swung up as for filling the boiler, the upper end of the discharge tube 86 is exposed, a feature which is of use in cleaning the tube or forcing air therethrough to discharge foreign matter lodged in the outlet ports 84. At the same time, in view of the fact that the upper end of tube 86 is well above the bottom of well 22, it is easy to pour water into the well to fill the boiler without getting any into the tube 86.

When the handle is raised, closure member 53 may easily be removed by pushing it in against the force of spring 64 until flange 12 is against plate 24 and then turning it through 90; when this is done, spring 64 will push the member back out through opening 60, and it may, of course, thereafter be replaced simply by reversing the procedure. This arrangement facilitates assembling and disassembling of the combined closure, steam dome and safety valve, both in the original manufacture of the iron and also for repair purposes.

In addition to these advantages, it can readily be seen that my iron has relatively few moving parts which might require frequent replacement or servicing, is simple in design and compact in structure, and therefore more economical to manufacture.

From the foregoing it will be seen that this invention is one well adapted to attain all of the ends and objects hereinbefore set forth, together with other advantages which are obvious and which are inherent to the structure.

It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and sub-combinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of the appended claims.

Inasmuch as many possible embodiments of the invention may be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described our invention, we claim:

1. In a steam iron, a sole plate having a steam outlet port in its lower surface, a boiler mounted on the upper surface of the sole plate and having in its upper wall a filler opening, a steam discharge tube communicating at its lower end with said steam outlet port and extending upwardly through said boiler, the upper end of the tube projecting outwardly through said filler opening and terminating above the boiler, a handle including a hollow post normally juxtaposed over said opening with its lower end in fixed vertically spaced relation thereto, an inverted cup-shaped member having its upper end within said hollow post and covering the upper end of said tube, spring means between the post and member urging the latter downwardly so its lower rim projects below the post and seats on said boiler around the margin of the filler opening thereby to seal the opening, said post having transverse to its axis a fixed web disposed intermediate the ends of said cup-shaped member and containing an aperture through which the medial portion of said member extends, a latch releasably securing the post in said normal position, said post being displaceable upwardly upon release of the latch, and a plurality of circumferentially spaced shoulders on the exterior of said member projecting outwardly above said web whereby the upward displacement of said post is transmitted to said member by said web and shoulders thereby to lift said member with the post and hence uncover the filler opening and the upper end of said tube.

2. A steam iron as in claim 1 wherein said shoulders are spaced above said web when said post is latched down in said normal position so they form with said web a lost motion connection through which upward displacement of the post is transmitted to said member.

3. A steam iron as in claim 1 wherein the aperture in said web is non-circular and the transverse cross section of said member through said shoulders is of complementary non-circular shape whereby said shoulders can pass freely through said aperture upon rotation of said member about its axis to a predetermined angular position relative to said web.

ROBERT J. SCOTT. NICHOLAS M. RUSKO.

Name Date Deems Feb. 6, 1940 Number 

